tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60840332109277827702018-02-12T19:38:43.204-08:00The Grub FilesMelissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-10443194266764249042017-04-04T06:07:00.000-07:002017-11-04T19:06:09.015-07:00Yetis<span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Dated 4/4/2017....last spring.....</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">I was looking through some drafts that I had typed, but never published, and laughed out loud reading this one.&nbsp; More funny kid antics to come in the next week!&nbsp; </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">It's about 8:15 am.&nbsp; Bleary-eyed, I'm making oatmeal and waffles in the kitchen, and the girls are at the dining room table.</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Monica:&nbsp; Mommy, are yetis real?</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Me: <i>&lt;not awake&gt;</i>...umm, what<i> &lt;in my head...yetis?&nbsp; where do they get these ideas??&gt;</i> ....yetis?&nbsp; I don't know...I don't think so...no, yetis are not real.</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Lauren <i>&lt;with an air of absolute authority&gt;</i>:&nbsp; They are real.</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Monica <i>&lt;wide-eyed&gt;</i>:&nbsp; How do YOU know??</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Lauren:&nbsp; I know EVERYTHING!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Monica:&nbsp; Oh yeah???&nbsp; Do you know ALL the planets?? Even the ones that INDIANS came from??</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Lauren:&nbsp; I sure do!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Monica:&nbsp; How do you even know this stuff???</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">Lauren is just laughing.&nbsp; I see the mischief in her eyes, and I have to smile, as well.&nbsp; She knows that she doesn't know everything, but she is delighted to have fooled her sister, even for just a moment.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">The yeti conversation continues in the next room.&nbsp; I hear Monica say something about "they inhabit the Himolays", or something of that nature.&nbsp; Out of pure curiosity, I google "yeti"</span><br /><ul><li><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">In the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklore" title="Folklore">folklore</a> of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepal" title="Nepal">Nepal</a>, the <b>Yeti</b> (<span class="nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English" title="Help:IPA for English">/<span style="border-bottom: 1px dotted;"><span title="/ˈ/ primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="/j/ 'y' in 'yes'">j</span><span title="/ɛ/ short 'e' in 'bed'">ɛ</span><span title="'t' in 'tie'">t</span><span title="/i/ 'y' in 'happy'">i</span></span>/</a></span></span>)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-4"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeti#cite_note-4">[4]</a></sup> or <b>Abominable Snowman</b> (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepali_language" title="Nepali language">Nepali</a>: हिममानव <i>himamānav</i>, lit. "snow man") is an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ape" title="Ape">ape</a>-like entity taller than an average human that is said to inhabit the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayas" title="Himalayas">Himalayan</a> region of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepal" title="Nepal">Nepal</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhutan" title="Bhutan">Bhutan</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibet" title="Tibet">Tibet</a>.</span></li></ul><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">I have no idea where they have acquired this knowledge about the fabled yetis of the Himalayas, but I love this gentle reminder that the kids are experts on many ideas that I am not.&nbsp; Hopefully, I'll remember to ask Monica about the Indians from the other planets after I pick her up from school 😉 </span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;verdana&quot; , sans-serif;">As a side note, there have been MANY conversations since this one about "Indians."&nbsp; Over the last six months, Monica has mentioned that Indians are extinct, Indians are not humans, and Indians no longer exist.&nbsp; We have also had several conversations to further confuse her when discussing Indians as in Native Americans, versus people from the country of India.&nbsp; :) :) :) </span>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-33530221771527597622017-01-26T08:21:00.001-08:002017-01-26T08:21:27.480-08:00Don't Blink<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />Recently, the Sun Valley Alumni Association, in conjunction with the local library, undertook a project to scan every page of every yearbook from 1963 to the present.&nbsp; My friends from the good old class of 1998 have been having a blast sharing our high school pictures on Facebook, laughing at old hairstyles, and reminiscing about classes, teachers, and lots of awesome memories.&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But, one of the biggest underlying themes in our online conversations is:&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">"DON'T BLINK.&nbsp; HOW HAS 20 YEARS GONE BY SO QUICKLY????"&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I ventured to comment, "<span><span><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span>The best part is, I don't FEEL like I'm my age, or like anyone's parent. I kind of feel like a big kid with a lot of responsibilities, and who said that I was qualified to parents other little humans???"&nbsp; I had a ton of fellow classmates echo these same sentiments, in one way or another.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></span></span></span></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span><br /></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span>And then, last night, I woke up in a panic.&nbsp; I had had a nightmare that I woke up today, and 20 years had gone by, again, and the kids were grown up and gone, and I was so sad because I couldn't remember all of the little nuances of their childhoods.</span></span></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span><br /></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span>So.&nbsp; It's settled.&nbsp; I will blog once again.&nbsp; I'm not necessarily looking to capture all the big crazy events in our lives.&nbsp; Those things will be easy enough to remember, and recall. &nbsp; Birthdays and dance recitals and vacations will always be documented with pictures, for sure.</span></span></span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><span class="UFICommentBody"><span>No, I'm looking to capture the silly little conversations that I overhear the girls having with each other.&nbsp; The completely random questions about life, and the discussions that follow.&nbsp; The impromptu trips to the playground, simply because the sun is shining, and we're loving life at that particular moment.&nbsp; </span></span></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So, I'll leave off with these two funny little tidbits:</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">JK is currently in Texas on an impromptu business trip, and the girls had a lot of questions about whether or not this trip was related to work, or to school, and the we got on to the topic of college.&nbsp; For the last year, Monica has consistently wanted to grow up to become (in no particular order), a dance teacher, a ninja, a mommy, and a spy.&nbsp; She specifically has expressed that going to college for spy-related studies is a top priority, as she does not yet have the skills or the equipment for this profession.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I mentioned that I went to college to study business, and she suddenly blurted out, "I’m totally going to be a business person when I grow up!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Because that’s what I want to study in college!” </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Me:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>“Ok, that’s what mommy studied, and I found it very interesting.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Monica:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>“And then after that I will take some time off to be a mommy and have babies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>And while I’m doing that, I’ll also be a ninja, because I already have all the skills I need for that job.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To which I replied:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>“A mommy ninja sounds like a great plan!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>I love all of your life goals!”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Not to be outdone, Lauren has lofty goals of her own,&nbsp; She just came up to me holding a penny. “Do you have any more monies? To buy some things?”<br /> Me: “ A penny isn’t getting you much these days. What are you trying to buy?”<br /> Lauren: “A pink unicorn that sings and is magical and can carry me to special places.”<br /> Me: “I’m sorry, I have no idea where to buy that, nor do I think I have enough money….”<br /> Lauren: “I’m sure it’s at the toy store!!!!”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And, just for fun, some recent playground pics from an unusually warm winter day :) </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4wDYqRV7Ndg/WIogr6vDv0I/AAAAAAAAA8k/h-PkQbiIPFQ0fwlPnb8Lh6lWiaMCFPlRQCLcB/s1600/20170119_135532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4wDYqRV7Ndg/WIogr6vDv0I/AAAAAAAAA8k/h-PkQbiIPFQ0fwlPnb8Lh6lWiaMCFPlRQCLcB/s640/20170119_135532.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J2F3QRPBd68/WIogumXcbXI/AAAAAAAAA8o/S41apiKVoiwWJjIcLmhoWEkD1uVIRfPrgCLcB/s1600/20170119_133716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J2F3QRPBd68/WIogumXcbXI/AAAAAAAAA8o/S41apiKVoiwWJjIcLmhoWEkD1uVIRfPrgCLcB/s640/20170119_133716.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y_Httb1Nnvw/WIogull5bmI/AAAAAAAAA8s/xLMHn2Om89UmiBCYt2w4fqwuMosQ6CsvQCLcB/s1600/20170119_133803.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y_Httb1Nnvw/WIogull5bmI/AAAAAAAAA8s/xLMHn2Om89UmiBCYt2w4fqwuMosQ6CsvQCLcB/s640/20170119_133803.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-76775109088707000282014-07-05T09:25:00.004-07:002014-07-05T09:25:43.412-07:00Toddler Talk - June edition<div dir="ltr">Anyone who spends time around little kids knows that they are constantly saying and doing the funniest things.&nbsp; So I'm going to try to jot down a couple funny, silly, sweet things that the girls say or do throughout each month and share them in a post at month-end. &nbsp; <br /><br /><ul><li>It was bedtime, and I was laying with Monica in her bed.&nbsp; I closed my eyes for a moment...and the next thing I knew, I could feel her lightly tracing her thumb across my forehead.&nbsp; Except....it was wet.&nbsp; I opened my eyes, and said, "Ummm, what are you doing?"&nbsp; And she replied, "I'm putting spit on your forehead, to help you relax a little bit."&nbsp; I just said, "Please....don't do that.&nbsp; It's just so gross."&nbsp; And she just smiled and rolled over and went to sleep. </li></ul></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>Whenever I refer to the girls as "my girls" or I say, "Let's go, girls" Monica insists, "NO!&nbsp; I'm a BOY!"&nbsp; And whenever I refer to Lauren as her little sister she says, "NO!&nbsp; She is my brother!&nbsp; I'm the sister!"&nbsp; And she always refers to Lauren as "he" in conversation.&nbsp; Haha, I obviously have some work to do here!&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul></div><div dir="ltr"><ul><li>"I really want to wear dirty socks. Dirty socks are nice!"&nbsp; She was just really excited to have successfully put on her own socks, even though they were an unmatching pair from the laundry pile.</li></ul></div><div dir="ltr"><ul><li>I was pulling weeds while Monica was playing in the sandbox.&nbsp; And suddenly she ran up and said, "Mommy, I need to show you something!"&nbsp; And her eyes lit up as I immediately said, "OK!" and took her hand as we ran towards the sandbox.&nbsp; Where she presented me with a sand pie, and launched into, "Happy birthday to Mommy, Happy Birthday to Mommy, Happy Birthday to Mommy, Happy birthday to Monica and Mommy!"&nbsp; And then she blew out the pretend candles and proceeded to sing happy birthday to Mommy Monica, Lauren, Daddy, the Woof, and The Pooper Cat.&nbsp; And I sang along and loved every single second of it!!!!!!</li></ul><ul><li>JK, Monica and I were laying in our bed settling, down for the day and relaxing before taking Monica into her room. &nbsp; I was in the middle, and I said, "Look, I'm the meat and you guys are the bread, we're a sandwich!"&nbsp; And JK starting laughing and calling me mommy salami, and I was laughing and saying I'd prefer to be a spicy chicken cutlet, and Monica chimes in with, "We are not delicious food!&nbsp; We are just people!!!"</li></ul><ul><li>Me:&nbsp; "What are you making"</li></ul>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Monica:&nbsp; "A note.&nbsp; It's for Daddy.&nbsp; It says I love you." </div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-70374921295849057282014-07-05T09:23:00.003-07:002014-07-05T09:23:24.456-07:00Lauren's First Birthday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Happy First Birthday, Lauren!</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I spent the better part of June 18th following her around the house and trying to get a nice picture of her.&nbsp; This is probably the best of the bunch.&nbsp; Haha!&nbsp; But it totally encompasses all that is our sweet, silly, happy little girl, who is always smiling and saying "Hoot, hoot" to us!</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-uewK1vyHAd0/U7B2__KVyPI/AAAAAAAAAvA/j-_QXmQhhC0/s640/20140618_142725.jpg" />&nbsp;</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We celebrated with a small party with immediate family, Lauren's first time in the pool, and a massive balloon pit that JK spent hours creating for her.&nbsp; While she loved the balloon pit, she was, and remains, unsure about the pool.&nbsp; This little one prefers to hang around the water table, lounge on the deck, and eat snacks.&nbsp; Just like Mommy!&nbsp; Unlike Monica, who would stay in the pool for hours if we would let her.&nbsp; Just like Daddy! </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-M-zB-8rjrTg/U7B3A0ulE1I/AAAAAAAAAvI/SaCMCvWp1SA/s1600/20140622_180312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-M-zB-8rjrTg/U7B3A0ulE1I/AAAAAAAAAvI/SaCMCvWp1SA/s640/20140622_180312.jpg" /> </a></span></span> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-2D2IBbaJsNM/U7B3BmpShWI/AAAAAAAAAvQ/hXX7KFY2cjo/s640/20140622_174930.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This one is blurry, but I love it because she is grabbing the cake!</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-2D2IBbaJsNM/U7B3BmpShWI/AAAAAAAAAvQ/hXX7KFY2cjo/s1600/20140622_174930.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></span></span> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-980jt0Qffho/U7B3CRUVIyI/AAAAAAAAAvY/iHbOImqz6K0/s640/20140622_180936.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Daddy was making her all kinds of balloon accessories.&nbsp; She loved it!</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-980jt0Qffho/U7B3CRUVIyI/AAAAAAAAAvY/iHbOImqz6K0/s1600/20140622_180936.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></span></span> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-726m9CNoeS0/U7B3DY6WdpI/AAAAAAAAAvg/c-JKwnmFUHg/s640/20140622_181440.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Opening presents amidst the balloons.&nbsp; </span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have a few more pictures to upload here, but wanted to get this post published before we head out for vacation.&nbsp; Our first year with her has been so much fun, I can't wait to see what this year brings!</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-87867246182590962802014-06-13T07:44:00.002-07:002014-06-13T07:44:23.053-07:00Family Restaurant Experience<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">JK has been really busy between work projects and school.&nbsp; So, last week, he was telling Monica that he was done a big project, and done school for the week, so we could do something fun as a family the next day.&nbsp; He asked what she would like to do, and she replied, "I want to go to a restaurant."&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We were a little puzzled, since we really don't go out to eat as a family.&nbsp; We'll grab the occasional slice of pizza while we're out at the mall;&nbsp; but, sit-down restaurant outings are usually reserved for JK and I as date nights, sans kids.&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We told her ok, thinking she might forget about it.&nbsp; But she woke up the following morning and spent the better part of the day talking about going to the restaurant....how she wanted to order off of the menu, place her order with a waiter, and hear the specials of the day.&nbsp; It was SO cute.&nbsp; We talked about what she might want to eat, how we need to behave in a restaurant, table manners, etc. throughout the day.&nbsp; I asked if she wanted to go for pizza (JK had suggested Pizza Hut) and she said, "NO, A RESTAURANT."&nbsp; Apparently pizza doesn't qualify as a real restaurant experience, haha.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So JK and I decided on Applebees, got ready while they were napping, and were ready to head out when they woke up from afternoon naps.&nbsp; I packed a couple emergency snacks, a couple quiet toys for distraction, and water cups for the girls.&nbsp; I also mentally prepared myself for the very real possibility that we may have to cut the meal short and get our food to go, in the event of a&nbsp; melt down.&nbsp; Best to keep expectations low, just in case!</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We arrived at Applebees, grabbed a booth and a booster seat for Lauren, and set the kids up with some place mat menus and crayons.&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And then...the most amazing thing happened.&nbsp; WE ACTUALLY ENJOYED OUR MEAL. &nbsp; Monica reviewed her menu choices, ordered her own meal, and said please and thank you to the waitress.&nbsp; Lauren sat like a perfect little lady in her booster seat and barely made a peep.&nbsp; We had a great waitress who was super speedy getting our order in and keeping the food coming.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Needless to say, JK and I were pretty surprised at how well everything&nbsp; went.&nbsp; Meals at home are often stressful events.&nbsp; I'm popping in and out of the kitchen every few minutes for something forgotten, the kids&nbsp; noisily voice their delights and/or dislikes with the food, and I spend so much time cutting up food into tiny pieces that I often don't eat until everyone else is nearly finished.&nbsp; So, I think it is safe to say that we will be willing to try to go out to eat as a family more often.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TjTrSyuHOco/U5caxSZP9sI/AAAAAAAAAug/eSDuCVg7tBs/s1600/20140529_183055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TjTrSyuHOco/U5caxSZP9sI/AAAAAAAAAug/eSDuCVg7tBs/s1600/20140529_183055.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zS3aR6_g80s/U5cazlTZbKI/AAAAAAAAAuo/zjafQFT4Uz4/s1600/20140529_184358.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zS3aR6_g80s/U5cazlTZbKI/AAAAAAAAAuo/zjafQFT4Uz4/s1600/20140529_184358.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-45836995802456646522014-06-03T09:29:00.000-07:002014-06-03T09:29:04.921-07:00Monica & Lauren Updates!I thought that life started flying by so quickly after Monica was born.&nbsp; I had no idea that it was possible for it to speed up even more now that we have both girls!&nbsp; With these two little ones, every moment of every day is just a whirlwind of activity.&nbsp; There are always food or drinks being requested, a diaper to change, toys to play with, clothes and shoes to put on and take off.&nbsp; Our days are busy and crazy, fun and frustrating, exhilarating and exhausting.&nbsp; At any given moment, laughter can become tears, and tears can be turned into laughter. <br /><br />I was just reading back over some of the old posts, and I got a little sad.&nbsp; There are so many happy and fun memories I've put here, but I am feeling guilty I have not had the time to keep up throughout Lauren's first year.&nbsp; So many amazing things have happened with these two little girls.&nbsp; They are always saying and doing things to make JK and I laugh, every day is a new adventure!&nbsp; And while the memories are fresh now, I know that the little day to day ones will fade over time.&nbsp; So, now that things have finally sort of settled into a rhythm, I'm thinking I really want to try to commit to carving out a little bit of time every week to capture a memory.&nbsp; I know that, later on, I'll be happy that I did.&nbsp; <br /><br />So, here's my memory for today.&nbsp; A little background....it dawned on me a few months ago, that it's neither JK nor I that is Lauren's favorite person.&nbsp; Lauren's most favorite person in the whole world is Monica!&nbsp; When her sister comes into the room, Lauren's face lights up with such happiness, it's such an awesome sight to see.<br /><br />And while Monica loves Lauren, she's also at the age where it is frustrating to have to share her time, her toys, and her parents with her baby sister.&nbsp; Especially since Lauren is running all around, following Monica, and trying to do everything that she does.&nbsp; <br /><br />We were driving in the car this week, and Monica was telling me that, sometimes, some things make her sad.&nbsp; But, when that happens, she just stops and thinks of something happy.&nbsp; I asked what makes her happy, and her immediate response was, "Playing with Baby Lauren!"&nbsp; It was truly the best thing I could have hoped to hear her say.&nbsp; I'm so happy that they enjoy each other so much and have so much fun together.&nbsp; Such wonderful little girls!<br /><br />So, here are some pictures of our happy girls doing some of their favorite things together:<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ecyv1RTBBo/U43yqKLNGLI/AAAAAAAAAtg/sOBz1-l1gco/s1600/20140602_144628.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ecyv1RTBBo/U43yqKLNGLI/AAAAAAAAAtg/sOBz1-l1gco/s1600/20140602_144628.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water Table Fun!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-crZSID-BniU/U43zfrHMHAI/AAAAAAAAAt4/x_oiFScbvL4/s1600/20140512_122235.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-crZSID-BniU/U43zfrHMHAI/AAAAAAAAAt4/x_oiFScbvL4/s1600/20140512_122235.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sandbox fun....Lauren is still on the fence about whether or not she wants to actually get IN the sandbox.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f0xiH6d7coU/U43y6oX8ULI/AAAAAAAAAto/zDah2-3tcUM/s1600/20140526_102359.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f0xiH6d7coU/U43y6oX8ULI/AAAAAAAAAto/zDah2-3tcUM/s1600/20140526_102359.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pancakes and TV shows</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JbV7V_Dn0Lk/U43zItVzgxI/AAAAAAAAAtw/Uce6ZGaZcqU/s1600/20140524_140404.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JbV7V_Dn0Lk/U43zItVzgxI/AAAAAAAAAtw/Uce6ZGaZcqU/s1600/20140524_140404.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These kids love Home Depot more than any other store.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sKskBOWro1U/U43zwobvw-I/AAAAAAAAAuA/UqaFXGNa4Jc/s1600/20140502_111638.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sKskBOWro1U/U43zwobvw-I/AAAAAAAAAuA/UqaFXGNa4Jc/s1600/20140502_111638.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cuties at the park!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pC21KvNVeX0/U43z709z-bI/AAAAAAAAAuI/HyMxJh1_j08/s1600/20140427_115627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pC21KvNVeX0/U43z709z-bI/AAAAAAAAAuI/HyMxJh1_j08/s1600/20140427_115627.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swinging</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nTGGdTZHlIs/U430BhL4-RI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/sx-ltpcK42o/s1600/20140427_115158.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nTGGdTZHlIs/U430BhL4-RI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/sx-ltpcK42o/s1600/20140427_115158.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Haha, I love this one!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kfJaW_zntlM/U43yFTHFfLI/AAAAAAAAAtY/TL_s_3Sj0KY/s1600/20140602_145553%25280%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kfJaW_zntlM/U43yFTHFfLI/AAAAAAAAAtY/TL_s_3Sj0KY/s1600/20140602_145553%25280%2529.jpg" height="225" width="400" />&nbsp;</a></td><td style="text-align: center;">&nbsp;</td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and the girls relaxing on the hammock</td></tr></tbody></table>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-81447409265508460502013-11-01T11:38:00.002-07:002013-11-01T11:38:21.930-07:00Sisters: Getting to Know Each Other<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We were understandably a little nervous about bringing home our new addition to our family.&nbsp; We had no idea how Monica would react to Lauren, and what type of adjustment period to anticipate.</span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The great news is that Monica is absolutely crazy about her little sister.&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In fact, the second night we were home from the hospital, Monica showed up in our room at 4 a.m., just to make sure that Lauren was resting comfortably.&nbsp; Luckily, Monica was very reasonable when we explained to her that it is very important that she stays in her own room at night, and that mommy and daddy would promise to take care of Lauren, as long as she would sleep all night in her big girl bed :)</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4ktFC5xpg6o/UihlETUg-cI/AAAAAAAAAnQ/ptuLa2WKxOM/s1600/blogger-image-104098776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4ktFC5xpg6o/UihlETUg-cI/AAAAAAAAAnQ/ptuLa2WKxOM/s1600/blogger-image-104098776.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But, Monica is a great helper during the day with Lauren.&nbsp; When Lauren is sad and cries, Monica tries to cheer her up by bringing her toys, entertaining her with picnics, and reading stories to her, and hanging out on her playmat.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BjTQ5zQKzYw/UihlHPDplNI/AAAAAAAAAng/lTLRw9tKKhw/s1600/blogger-image--1173412456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BjTQ5zQKzYw/UihlHPDplNI/AAAAAAAAAng/lTLRw9tKKhw/s1600/blogger-image--1173412456.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GQ6YscqAGDM/UihlIq6lw7I/AAAAAAAAAno/fgRH2ClmwFU/s1600/blogger-image--752366980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GQ6YscqAGDM/UihlIq6lw7I/AAAAAAAAAno/fgRH2ClmwFU/s640/blogger-image--752366980.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">That said, while Lauren appreciates Monica's efforts, she definitely lets her know when she needs her space.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkpBgBMDiGM/UihlBtS5HMI/AAAAAAAAAnA/bZRm8hjoAnE/s1600/blogger-image-2108066345.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkpBgBMDiGM/UihlBtS5HMI/AAAAAAAAAnA/bZRm8hjoAnE/s320/blogger-image-2108066345.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Monica also loves to hold Lauren snuggle her with lots of hugs and love. </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8mO4h6MRnw8/Uii-gXeEE0I/AAAAAAAAAoI/CJPH44g5LQA/s1600/blogger-image-470623676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8mO4h6MRnw8/Uii-gXeEE0I/AAAAAAAAAoI/CJPH44g5LQA/s320/blogger-image-470623676.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TSDLvCGWbek/UihlDFWxUaI/AAAAAAAAAnI/X10Q_L0bDJI/s1600/blogger-image-130742920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TSDLvCGWbek/UihlDFWxUaI/AAAAAAAAAnI/X10Q_L0bDJI/s320/blogger-image-130742920.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">This is one of my favorites - not because of the picture itself, but because of the story behind it.&nbsp; Monica was whining and insisting that she get a turn to sit with Lauren.&nbsp; But as soon as I sat her up next to her, Monica was mad that she was leaning on her.&nbsp; Monica kept scooting away and, naturally, Lauren kept leaning, until the two of them ended up slumped all over each other.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">&nbsp;<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x6xYgbclIoY/UihlKNNq6BI/AAAAAAAAAns/NV0J70UGVXY/s640/blogger-image--818696503.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x6xYgbclIoY/UihlKNNq6BI/AAAAAAAAAns/NV0J70UGVXY/s400/blogger-image--818696503.jpg" width="400" />&nbsp;</a></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Some dolls and stuffed animals to cheer up Lauren.<a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Woc3vLvGEq8/UihlLi_Cc5I/AAAAAAAAAn0/eE_LSRQ4f8M/s640/blogger-image--311622669.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Woc3vLvGEq8/UihlLi_Cc5I/AAAAAAAAAn0/eE_LSRQ4f8M/s400/blogger-image--311622669.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8mO4h6MRnw8/Uii-gXeEE0I/AAAAAAAAAoE/E73Dlg5jV-8/s640/blogger-image-470623676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As a mom of two, one of my most favorite parts is when Monica and I are playing and we hear Lauren wake up from her nap.&nbsp; As soon as Monica hears her make a peep over the monitor, she starts shouting, "Help her, help her!" and races for the stairs so we can go upstairs and get her from her crib.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-koM9WYGsZQQ/UihlF8cPpgI/AAAAAAAAAnU/Gjv9ucc_3hQ/s640/blogger-image-393028878.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-koM9WYGsZQQ/UihlF8cPpgI/AAAAAAAAAnU/Gjv9ucc_3hQ/s400/blogger-image-393028878.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">That's not to say that parenting two isn't without it's challenges!&nbsp; As Lauren becomes more mobile and is getting interested in toys, we've had plenty of opportunities to work on Monica's sharing skills.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As you can see below, Monica is streaking by to get to Lauren.&nbsp; She is never far away when Lauren starts checking out a new toy!</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fEBGh1w3YAA/UnK6FqCBm3I/AAAAAAAAArU/DG0doaYAYRI/s640/blogger-image-2136401021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fEBGh1w3YAA/UnK6FqCBm3I/AAAAAAAAArU/DG0doaYAYRI/s400/blogger-image-2136401021.jpg" width="400" /></a> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mo9m5ug7fIs/UnK57YoXkrI/AAAAAAAAAq4/d_5AY34pJHk/s1600/blogger-image--1331532657.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mo9m5ug7fIs/UnK57YoXkrI/AAAAAAAAAq4/d_5AY34pJHk/s400/blogger-image--1331532657.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We've worked out some strategies to handle this, though.&nbsp; We ask Monica up front which toys she would like to share with Lauren, and then Monica gives them to her.</span> </div><div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-w2h914XJs5g/UnPyKFEUyLI/AAAAAAAAAsA/QkwUNIX9u58/s1600/blogger-image--1602752532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-w2h914XJs5g/UnPyKFEUyLI/AAAAAAAAAsA/QkwUNIX9u58/s400/blogger-image--1602752532.jpg" width="400" /> </a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But it's generally pretty easy to convince the two of them to play nicely together.&nbsp; We'll see how that changes over time when Lauren starts forming opinions of her own!</span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wBmDXeID6d0/UnPyFexMhUI/AAAAAAAAArw/52tY8Scf5yk/s1600/blogger-image-203408334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wBmDXeID6d0/UnPyFexMhUI/AAAAAAAAArw/52tY8Scf5yk/s400/blogger-image-203408334.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Most often, I just have to make sure they aren't mauling each other.&nbsp; I never know what I'm going to find if I look away for even a second!</span> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-KSGlm7iWYAE/UnK6H3q2tPI/AAAAAAAAArc/Wey_LBCI6nM/s400/blogger-image-1998498691.jpg" width="400" /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The hardest part is really also the sweetest part.&nbsp; It's tough when they both need me at the same time.&nbsp; Luckily, mommy usually has lots of hugs to go around for everyone!</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-TPmpXECxAiw/UnK6Ak7Ph-I/AAAAAAAAArE/OOIWoncMzGY/s640/blogger-image--978224324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-TPmpXECxAiw/UnK6Ak7Ph-I/AAAAAAAAArE/OOIWoncMzGY/s400/blogger-image--978224324.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Love these girls!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-cJP18dZScC8/UnK59ntlgAI/AAAAAAAAAq8/qqCYbZhMRd0/s640/blogger-image--1031458937.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-cJP18dZScC8/UnK59ntlgAI/AAAAAAAAAq8/qqCYbZhMRd0/s640/blogger-image--1031458937.jpg" />&nbsp;</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHs3UwKHY-A/UnPyHnwg2UI/AAAAAAAAAr4/ht30XY9PWss/s1600/blogger-image--2074074054.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHs3UwKHY-A/UnPyHnwg2UI/AAAAAAAAAr4/ht30XY9PWss/s1600/blogger-image--2074074054.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-74540386703350657142013-10-14T05:52:00.001-07:002013-10-14T05:52:31.652-07:00Monica's 2nd birthday<span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Yes, her birthday was August 29th.&nbsp; Yes, It's taken me over a month to write a post.&nbsp; Yes, I'm behind.&nbsp; Big surprise!&nbsp; Life is busy!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anyway, a week before her birthday, I told Monica that she had a big day coming up and we were going to be celebrating her birthday.&nbsp; And her response was, "Cake!"</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When she woke up on August 29th and JK and I said, "Happy birthday, Monica," she also replied with, "Cake!"&nbsp; And so, naturally, we gave her cake for breakfast to begin her birthday celebration. I threw in a side helping of blueberries, so I could convince myself that there was some healthy component to the breakfast :)</span><br /><div><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-N5pY-2hrr_U/UiqYj7xcpuI/AAAAAAAAAos/xBw3Ll_oNPM/s640/blogger-image-396182514.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-N5pY-2hrr_U/UiqYj7xcpuI/AAAAAAAAAos/xBw3Ll_oNPM/s640/blogger-image-396182514.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Her next big birthday surprise was that we had finally - two years to the day, to be exact - re-finished the basement and turned it into a playroom.&nbsp; A brand new slide and 500+ new Legos were waiting for her downstairs!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-wioxWam8NNk/UisNoTbbw6I/AAAAAAAAAps/1DkTHPcM0WA/s640/blogger-image--742921889.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-wioxWam8NNk/UisNoTbbw6I/AAAAAAAAAps/1DkTHPcM0WA/s640/blogger-image--742921889.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/--oJVi0uP5F8/UiqYipmBnMI/AAAAAAAAAok/zcYhNQH1cBE/s640/blogger-image--1138551529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/--oJVi0uP5F8/UiqYipmBnMI/AAAAAAAAAok/zcYhNQH1cBE/s640/blogger-image--1138551529.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In lieu of a big birthday party, we decided to take Monica on a special adventure for her first time visiting the aquarium.&nbsp; It was super hard to get any good photos of her, she was so excited that she hardly stopped moving the entire time we were there!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-P-nm42piwqQ/UisILKjL-rI/AAAAAAAAApc/S4VHSgVVGP8/s640/blogger-image--397460412.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-P-nm42piwqQ/UisILKjL-rI/AAAAAAAAApc/S4VHSgVVGP8/s640/blogger-image--397460412.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We did have a small get-together with immediate family to celebrate with swimming, pizza,&nbsp; and cake and ice cream.&nbsp; </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0dmQQoBtcp0/UiqYhb1yvMI/AAAAAAAAAoc/GE247BQYQpw/s640/blogger-image-1982264162.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0dmQQoBtcp0/UiqYhb1yvMI/AAAAAAAAAoc/GE247BQYQpw/s400/blogger-image-1982264162.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lpXUGARx0fA/UisIH8-I2xI/AAAAAAAAApM/KGK0kqyQtKs/s640/blogger-image--1210488040.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lpXUGARx0fA/UisIH8-I2xI/AAAAAAAAApM/KGK0kqyQtKs/s640/blogger-image--1210488040.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-vSsnnmfrOA8/UisIJjMU_NI/AAAAAAAAApU/gjRGGB07YPE/s640/blogger-image-1112565376.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-vSsnnmfrOA8/UisIJjMU_NI/AAAAAAAAApU/gjRGGB07YPE/s640/blogger-image-1112565376.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And then we wrapped up the celebration with some fun with trains.&nbsp; </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-EcIldvYqwQ8/UisNqI7huNI/AAAAAAAAAp0/C5t1A9E2-A0/s640/blogger-image-1493863618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-EcIldvYqwQ8/UisNqI7huNI/AAAAAAAAAp0/C5t1A9E2-A0/s640/blogger-image-1493863618.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />It's hard to believe how grown up our little girl is, two years have gone by so fast!&nbsp; </span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-26920861874724757432013-09-05T07:15:00.001-07:002013-09-06T14:40:52.729-07:00Introducing Lauren Nicole<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She is here! &nbsp;And had been for over two months. LOL.&nbsp; It's tough to blog with two kiddos!&nbsp; But, it's becoming evident that it is so important to make the effort.&nbsp; I can't even believe it's possible, but time is speeding by even MORE quickly now that we have two little ones!</span><br><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">&nbsp;Lauren was born on June 18th, 2013, weighing 8lbs, 8ozs, and 19.5 inches long.&nbsp; She is absolutely perfect. </span><br><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Newborn pic the day after she was born :)&nbsp; </span><br><div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SPqeewq3-Fk/UhuqmUARajI/AAAAAAAAAlc/nx_AunbM5Hc/s640/blogger-image--1394624999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SPqeewq3-Fk/UhuqmUARajI/AAAAAAAAAlc/nx_AunbM5Hc/s640/blogger-image--1394624999.jpg">&nbsp;</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A couple of shots of our little sleeping beauty during her first two weeks at home: </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_emHkyD70eo/UiZWQqBMDQI/AAAAAAAAAmk/Xep6493o0Oc/s400/blogger-image-1045054140.jpg" width="400"></span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cNwZff32akI/UiZWNT-pa7I/AAAAAAAAAmU/EYgQ7GCUg9g/s640/blogger-image-1031570283.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cNwZff32akI/UiZWNT-pa7I/AAAAAAAAAmU/EYgQ7GCUg9g/s400/blogger-image-1031570283.jpg" width="400"></a></span><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-71VBcmTFF6s/UiZWL1gaYmI/AAAAAAAAAmM/gbm0FY77lwQ/s640/blogger-image-566273647.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-71VBcmTFF6s/UiZWL1gaYmI/AAAAAAAAAmM/gbm0FY77lwQ/s400/blogger-image-566273647.jpg" width="400"></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8LstcoRSUUs/UiZWGJYmNPI/AAAAAAAAAl4/Wz7SQVFfHGk/s1600/blogger-image-1628643716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8LstcoRSUUs/UiZWGJYmNPI/AAAAAAAAAl4/Wz7SQVFfHGk/s320/blogger-image-1628643716.jpg" width="320"></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Enjoying her swing!&nbsp; She takes many naps and her first stretch of night sleep in her swing.&nbsp; She loves it just as much as her big sister did at this age!&nbsp; It's tough to keep Monica out of the swing, but we're working on it :)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DaPCBPqRimg/UiZWPCTPWRI/AAAAAAAAAmg/2EwIhNlF9x8/s1600/blogger-image--1071580441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DaPCBPqRimg/UiZWPCTPWRI/AAAAAAAAAmg/2EwIhNlF9x8/s400/blogger-image--1071580441.jpg" width="400"></a></div><br><br><br><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We found out very quickly that the world around us isn't going to stop just because we have a newborn, so we are on the go quite often with this little love.&nbsp; Luckily, unlike her big sister, she LOVES infant car seat and going on car rides. </span><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-DaPCBPqRimg/UiZWPCTPWRI/AAAAAAAAAmc/p41-yzG31pM/s640/blogger-image--1071580441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Wide-eyed and ready to start the day </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0lMxnaOZzEk/UiZWEcYmSEI/AAAAAAAAAls/oBPoqqe4H0U/s640/blogger-image--786852666.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0lMxnaOZzEk/UiZWEcYmSEI/AAAAAAAAAls/oBPoqqe4H0U/s640/blogger-image--786852666.jpg"></a></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span><br><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She's just so sweet!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-NPVId1_ztWk/UiZWIHR_utI/AAAAAAAAAl8/eO6y0f_wOJ8/s640/blogger-image--127836883.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-NPVId1_ztWk/UiZWIHR_utI/AAAAAAAAAl8/eO6y0f_wOJ8/s640/blogger-image--127836883.jpg"></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1BbionNWPYI/UiZWKQJT3oI/AAAAAAAAAmE/FDdDY4-qh-g/s640/blogger-image-1369405626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1BbionNWPYI/UiZWKQJT3oI/AAAAAAAAAmE/FDdDY4-qh-g/s400/blogger-image-1369405626.jpg" width="400"></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I just found this one when I was going through my phone looking for pictures.&nbsp; I think we took this our second day home from the hospital, and I believe it's the only shot of our whole family since Lauren's been born.&nbsp; I'll have to make it a priority to get some more pictures of the four of us!</span> </span><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We have a couple posts in draft right now....highlights of these two sisters getting to know each other, as well as a post celebrating Monica's second birthday.&nbsp; Lots of fun stuff going on here, so lots of updates to make in the upcoming weeks!</span><br><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br></span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-82817872746730477472013-06-04T18:31:00.002-07:002013-06-04T18:31:32.809-07:00We're Ready<span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">After months and months of procrastinating, I think we're finally ready for baby #2 to join us.&nbsp; Good thing, because June 9th is only five days away!&nbsp; JK has been in beast mode the past few weeks, painting, steam cleaning carpets, putting away and pulling stuff out of the attic, and assembling various pieces of baby gear.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I've been cooking freezer meals, stalking supermarket sales to stock the pantry, doing laundry, and cleaning the house like a madwoman. </span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Monica has been helping by conducting quality control tests on all the baby equipment that has been unpacked and reassembled in the past few weeks:</span><br /><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7Ji9Bog5u-c/UazDaxq_DdI/AAAAAAAAAk4/es2qydRlGdY/s640/blogger-image--876365076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7Ji9Bog5u-c/UazDaxq_DdI/AAAAAAAAAk4/es2qydRlGdY/s1600/blogger-image--876365076.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">She climbed into the crib all by herself in about two seconds flat!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-HB0_PifSWl4/UazDVjcjg-I/AAAAAAAAAkY/v9ZQ4WATdbk/s640/blogger-image--293088824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-HB0_PifSWl4/UazDVjcjg-I/AAAAAAAAAkY/v9ZQ4WATdbk/s640/blogger-image--293088824.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Just a <i>little</i> big for the snug a bunny swing</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-wtgio5hWEM8/UazDYC8ZyWI/AAAAAAAAAko/z8HBfhND7YM/s640/blogger-image-1486037956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-wtgio5hWEM8/UazDYC8ZyWI/AAAAAAAAAko/z8HBfhND7YM/s640/blogger-image-1486037956.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">This bassinet was soon filled to the brim with stuffed animals!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">During the day, her and I have been keeping busy attending lots of play dates with friends and spending time outside in the yard.&nbsp; On nights and weekends, the three of us have been going on picnics, hikes, and tons of walks around the neighborhood.&nbsp; I'm trying to stay active as much as possible, while enjoying the great weather we've been having.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">On another note, I'm super excited that Monica's been doing so well with independent play lately.&nbsp; We had a huge breakthrough this week....she signed to me that she wanted to color, and just as I was turning around to tell her that we first needed to pick up her blocks, I saw that she had already cleaned them up!&nbsp; All on her own, without me asking her!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">So, she immediately received tons of praise, and, of course, coloring supplies.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-46TlkhXp-I0/UazDZqbjqRI/AAAAAAAAAkw/ZWn1X4NESxU/s640/blogger-image-2044145384.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-46TlkhXp-I0/UazDZqbjqRI/AAAAAAAAAkw/ZWn1X4NESxU/s640/blogger-image-2044145384.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Just for fun, one last pic of her and Daddy kicking off the swimming season!&nbsp; This kiddo loves the water!</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-m2AP7dZlR0g/UazDW_pCrfI/AAAAAAAAAkg/frnPNFrxRic/s640/blogger-image--1222136507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-m2AP7dZlR0g/UazDW_pCrfI/AAAAAAAAAkg/frnPNFrxRic/s640/blogger-image--1222136507.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">That's all for now....next time I post, we'll be a family of four!!!</span></div></div></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-9220245087304007012013-03-09T07:15:00.004-08:002013-03-09T07:15:49.505-08:00Big Girl Bed TimeIt has been several months since I've posted, a situation I fully plan to remedy by getting back to more regular posting!&nbsp; <br /><br />What's been going on since I last posted?&nbsp; <br /><br />1.&nbsp; Monica is a full fledged little person now.&nbsp; 18 months old, and she definitely has a mind of her own.&nbsp; We have been busy surviving the holidays, surviving our first illness-ridden winter, and surviving the scariness of joining our local MOMS Club group.&nbsp; So, other than the holidays, our winter has been pretty busy between watching movies, wiping noses, and going to play dates.&nbsp; <br /><br />2.&nbsp; In addition to all of that, we have other big news..... Monica is going to be a big sister!&nbsp; Grub 2.0 is due in just three short months!<br /><br />3.&nbsp; In preparation for #2's arrival, Monica is being moved into a big girl bed so that #2 can have the crib.&nbsp; We've decided to tackle this transition sooner than later, in hope that Monica will be comfortably settled in her big girl bed by the time #2 arrives in June.<br /><br />How is that going, you may ask?&nbsp; Well....to be honest, I'm not sure.&nbsp; We're just wrapping up the first week. The first few days went surprisingly well, with little issue, and then....I'm just not sure what happened!&nbsp; She seems to think that she doesn't need to sleep at all during the day, and while she goes to bed without issue at night, she wakes up after several hours and is tough to settle down.&nbsp;<br /><br />So, it was 2:30pm, I was starving for my lunch, and she was showing no signs of settling down during the 45 minutes I spent attempting to cajole her into getting in her bed.&nbsp; It was time to change tactics.&nbsp; So, I told her good-bye and goodnight, and left the room.&nbsp; I locked her gate behind me and went out of sight into my own room.&nbsp; I had my phone for visual support, and the monitor was on, so I decided to just wait and see what happened.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-aDb_hb1Qw4s/UTpEPgsP4jI/AAAAAAAAAi0/J-41WiKPFyw/s640/blogger-image-130543352.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-aDb_hb1Qw4s/UTpEPgsP4jI/AAAAAAAAAi0/J-41WiKPFyw/s320/blogger-image-130543352.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><br />Surprisingly, she didn't freak out or scream for me to come back into the room.&nbsp; Instead, she took this opportunity to inspect every nook and cranny of her diaper pail.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oJbXhOOWlck/UTpER5XtlDI/AAAAAAAAAjE/VfGp58jNwX0/s640/blogger-image--630712540.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oJbXhOOWlck/UTpER5XtlDI/AAAAAAAAAjE/VfGp58jNwX0/s320/blogger-image--630712540.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br />Then she pulled out and inspected every toy in her toy basket, most of which she has not played with in three or more months.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-QK1UcDQO1f8/UTpEQnj1P3I/AAAAAAAAAi8/2KvK-GtNIo0/s640/blogger-image--2131073695.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-QK1UcDQO1f8/UTpEQnj1P3I/AAAAAAAAAi8/2KvK-GtNIo0/s320/blogger-image--2131073695.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />I became hopeful when she actually started to climb into the bed.&nbsp; Hooray, we're moving in the right direction!&nbsp; She's sleepy and she's heading for bed on her own accord!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vkYWkmaNzlw/UTpEUGH75SI/AAAAAAAAAjY/0U-JMhJjQns/s1600/blogger-image--388180279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vkYWkmaNzlw/UTpEUGH75SI/AAAAAAAAAjY/0U-JMhJjQns/s320/blogger-image--388180279.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><br />Alas, it was a cruel ruse, as she jumped right back out of the bed.&nbsp; Then she went on a mission to tear her changing pad off of the dresser and throw it around the room.&nbsp; <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then, things got quiet.&nbsp; But she was in the small area of the room closest to the door, where the camera doesn't have visibility, so I wasn't sure what was happening.&nbsp; And I couldn't approach the doorway for a peek, for fear that she'd see me and start crying.&nbsp; After a good five minutes of quiet, I decided I would angle my phone around the door to try to see what she was doing.<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-vkYWkmaNzlw/UTpEUGH75SI/AAAAAAAAAjU/WnIqDrRxCvI/s1600/blogger-image--388180279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-EQyrKDOTx3U/UTpETA4eUpI/AAAAAAAAAjM/xrzgWZmt3Uk/s640/blogger-image-654703262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-EQyrKDOTx3U/UTpETA4eUpI/AAAAAAAAAjM/xrzgWZmt3Uk/s640/blogger-image-654703262.jpg" /></a></div><br />It's hard to tell in the pic above, but the very faint shadow through the lattice of the gate is her!<br /><br />I waited five more minutes and then snuck into the hallway.<br /><br />Kiddo was fast asleep on the floor, using the changing pad as a pillow.&nbsp; Little weirdo!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-4lkHPJxIVCU/UTpEWwg0uBI/AAAAAAAAAjk/9sc9duQzwAY/s640/blogger-image-805470538.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-4lkHPJxIVCU/UTpEWwg0uBI/AAAAAAAAAjk/9sc9duQzwAY/s640/blogger-image-805470538.jpg" /></a></div><br />I didn't want to risk going into her room for a small blanket, and everything in our bedroom is for a king sized bed.&nbsp; So I grabbed a bath towel to drape over her for warmth.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-fgkMtYxGpEo/UTpFbXzwIyI/AAAAAAAAAjs/sdb6CYL5oV8/s640/blogger-image-857124851.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-fgkMtYxGpEo/UTpFbXzwIyI/AAAAAAAAAjs/sdb6CYL5oV8/s640/blogger-image-857124851.jpg" /> </a>She slept there for two straight hours, I couldn't believe it!&nbsp; After tiptoeing around and whispering all afternoon - I couldn't close the door with her sleeping against it - JK and I went up to wake her at nearly 5pm.&nbsp; </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">JK and I talked a lot about what had changed during the week, and why she seemed to have a sudden aversion to the bed after a few good days of sleeping in it.&nbsp; Temperatures dropped during the week, and he thinks she was cold with the bed next to the wall on the outside of the room.&nbsp; I agreed, and before bedtime last night, we relocated the bed to the inside wall, where her crib used to be.&nbsp; Miraculously, she slept through the night last night.&nbsp; I'm hoping that solved the problem, and that we'll get back into a good bedtime routine in her bed - instead of on the floor or in our bed!</div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-26112401090517152282012-10-17T12:52:00.001-07:002012-10-17T12:52:26.246-07:00My New Stylist<span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Monica and I had just returned from a short shopping trip in Media, and I was checking my email while she was investigating the contents of her diaper bag.&nbsp; The laptop was on the end table next to the couch, so my back was to her.&nbsp; I heard a little giggle, and then felt a yank on my hair.&nbsp; What the heck!&nbsp; She never pulls my hair on purpose, so I was really shocked...until I turned around and found this:</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AnXWmKS30y4/UH7wDcBdD6I/AAAAAAAAAgY/IPmWoR8MNtg/s1600/blogger-image-937030729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AnXWmKS30y4/UH7wDcBdD6I/AAAAAAAAAgY/IPmWoR8MNtg/s400/blogger-image-937030729.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">My very own little stylist!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">She had found my hairbrush in the diaper bag, and was giggling away while she worked on giving me a new 'do.&nbsp; Can someone please tell this kid that teasing hair went out of style about 20 years ago??</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VIQnQdVDpBs/UH7wB5BLOaI/AAAAAAAAAgA/Bq6SOtIDhEM/s640/blogger-image--754507179.jpg" />&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">It wasn't the most comfortable experience for me, but she sure was having a blast!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z71GiYX2QmY/UH7wDpev3wI/AAAAAAAAAgg/wRnJ8c_1dBo/s1600/blogger-image--1979419231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z71GiYX2QmY/UH7wDpev3wI/AAAAAAAAAgg/wRnJ8c_1dBo/s400/blogger-image--1979419231.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Whoops!&nbsp; Don't eat the hair, kiddo! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7EV1e1kEKhA/UH7wCVPSgII/AAAAAAAAAgI/p4vXdZLqvlg/s640/blogger-image--34917860.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7EV1e1kEKhA/UH7wCVPSgII/AAAAAAAAAgI/p4vXdZLqvlg/s640/blogger-image--34917860.jpg" />&nbsp;</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Monica says, "Mama, I officially declare you to be lovely!"&nbsp;&nbsp; It might be days before I'm able to untangle this mess....but she sure had fun, so it's worth it! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VKRC_55srB0/UH7wDB0Kj3I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/J2nJPS6PhCU/s640/blogger-image--461977813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-VKRC_55srB0/UH7wDB0Kj3I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/J2nJPS6PhCU/s640/blogger-image--461977813.jpg" /></a></span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-5089373771491205112012-10-10T13:30:00.001-07:002012-10-10T13:30:04.973-07:00Germs Galore<span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">10/9/2012</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">We are in the throes of Monica's very first cold.&nbsp; I really shouldn't complain, as we made it 13 months without her getting sick once.&nbsp; Unfortunately, I'm still getting over this horrible illness, so I am in a weakened condition, myself.&nbsp; However, I suppose that this is preferable to the alternative, which would be me getting sick the moment she becomes healthy again, as she will assuredly regain her normal energy x 1,000.&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">The best word to describe our current situation would be "disgusting."&nbsp; I actually found myself holding a tissue up to her nose and saying, "blow" yesterday, and then laughing uncontrollably at myself for being so idiotic. &nbsp; It didn't dawn on me until that moment that she doesn't know how to blow her nose.&nbsp; So she just sits there with snot running out of it at continuously, which means that I am wiping her nose with a tissue every two minutes; during which, she repeatedly jerks her head, thus smearing snot across her cheeks.&nbsp; Where it dries into a crust because I am too busy throwing out the snotty tissue and washing my hands in preparation for the next round of nose wiping in t-minus 45 seconds.&nbsp; That is, as long as she hasn't already wiped it on the couch. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">The saddest part is that she can't suck her thumb while she sleeps because she can't breathe through her nose.&nbsp; So she is alternating between sucking her thumb for a few seconds and then pulling it out to frantically gasp for breath.&nbsp; Poor thing!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Except for when we're (sorta) sleeping, I don't think we've stopped watching TV since Saturday afternoon.&nbsp; I'm pretty sure she is in heaven, as I have been too weak to try to engage her in actual brain-developing learning activities.&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">10/10/2012</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Unrelated post note - I just wrote 2011 and kept going like it was nothing.&nbsp; And then I realized 2012 is almost over.&nbsp; Brain = dead.</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">My fears have come true.&nbsp; Monica is rallying even quicker than I thought possible, while I remain a supine, inert lump on the couch.&nbsp; To her credit, she has been a perfect angel for most of the day today, revisiting with her toys that were ignored during her snuffly couch potato phase.&nbsp; Unfortunately, she seems sick of watching television, and I don't think that I have much more time before she is climbing the walls and needed to get out of the house to burn off some energy.&nbsp; Perhaps I will rouse myself after her nap for a quick trip to the bank.&nbsp; The bank is a good errand because we can hit the drive through without changing out of our pajamas.&nbsp; Seems silly to get dressed at 5pm, the day is practically over!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">JK has been trying to convince himself that I have an exponentially worse version of a slight sore throat and mild fatigue he was feeling last week.&nbsp; While I seriously hope he is right, I remain unconvinced due to the coughing he was just doing on his way out the door.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">So, that's what's going on over here.&nbsp; No cute picture to end this blog post, we're not the most photogenic bunch right now! </span>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-70225668964491155502012-10-03T20:00:00.001-07:002012-10-03T20:00:07.314-07:00The Great Self-Feeding Experiment<span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">The Grubster eats a lot.&nbsp; That statement can be interpreted in two ways, and both apply.&nbsp; She eats large quantities of food, and she eats on a frequent basis.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">As of right now, I am basically serving her four meals a day.&nbsp; We have breakfast when she wakes up (9am), first lunch before nap (12:30pm), second lunch after nap (4:30pm) and dinner (7pm) every day.&nbsp; Once in a while one of the lunches is more snack-like, but there is never any telling as to how much she will eat.&nbsp; And since she generally demands a variety of foods at each of these four meals, my on-the-spot culinary skills are unparalleled these days.&nbsp; Thank God for the internet, which has a wealth of recipes and information relative to feeding toddlers!</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">This week, I was gauging her level of hunger for first lunch before her nap.&nbsp; Thinking she was too tired to invest herself in a full meal, I handed her a cup of milk and a couple of puffs, and spooned some yogurt into a small bowl.&nbsp; I figured it would fill her up enough so that she'd take a decent nap, and then we'd have a real lunch after she woke up.</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I stepped into the living room to grab my phone off the end table.&nbsp; JK usually texts me when he is on his way home, so I wanted to think ahead to what we could eat for lunch after Monica was asleep.&nbsp; And when I got back, I found this:</span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ttdNc4YBY9Q/UGs3476fKVI/AAAAAAAAAfU/GML2y5eDOcE/s640/blogger-image-1371041279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ttdNc4YBY9Q/UGs3476fKVI/AAAAAAAAAfU/GML2y5eDOcE/s640/blogger-image-1371041279.jpg" />&nbsp;</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Her high chair has this attached semi-tray that you see in the picture, as well as the removable full-sized tray.&nbsp; Since she started eating finger foods, we ALWAYS have the full-sized tray on the high chair.&nbsp; She hasn't had a meal without the full-sized tray since we started having meals in the dining room several months ago; which is why I had never before encountered this situation.&nbsp; </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Without the full-sized tray, Monica can reach out and grab whatever is close by on the dining room table.&nbsp; In this case, happened to be the yogurt bowl and spoon.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I decided to let her have at it and just see what happened.&nbsp; She has tried to take a spoon out of my hand to feed herself some of whatever I was spooning onto her tray, but she never gets any food into her mouth that way.&nbsp; She isn't quite ready to balance the spoon in a way that food won't slide off of it before it gets to her mouth.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Luckily for her, yogurt is sticky, and it stuck to the spoon.&nbsp; All she had to do was stick the spoon in the bowl, and then stick the spoon in her mouth.&nbsp; I was amazed and impressed that she was actually eating so much of the yogurt.&nbsp; And boy, was she proud of herself....I had to refill the little bowl three times!&nbsp; I'm not entirely sure that she was even that hungry, I think she was just showing off her sweet skills.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Ahhhhh, this independent little baby isn't that much of a baby anymore!!!&nbsp; </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IlXVOIWCEsw/UGs350FJmdI/AAAAAAAAAfc/FyX6TvTfawQ/s640/blogger-image-680429356.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IlXVOIWCEsw/UGs350FJmdI/AAAAAAAAAfc/FyX6TvTfawQ/s640/blogger-image-680429356.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-78629178044034197182012-09-18T19:58:00.001-07:002012-09-18T19:58:38.145-07:00Monica is One Year Old!<span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Our little love, Miss Monica, turned one year old on August 29th, 2012. I have had a heck of a time putting together any words to describe how incredible this past year has been for us. And when I try to skip the words and try to work on pictures...well...I get so lost, looking at over 1,800 pictures that I have taken (and these are just the saved ones!), and how much she has changed, and thinking back on all the wonderful times we have had with this little lady since she came into our lives.</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L0LrRGJHibk/UE45glVtoyI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/CblecFubMD4/s1600/blogger-image-224359501.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L0LrRGJHibk/UE45glVtoyI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/CblecFubMD4/s1600/blogger-image-224359501.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Hello, world! I'm brand new here :)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-_m2W7cstdTo/UE45gGz1IsI/AAAAAAAAAeI/51ko9p6_kNw/s640/blogger-image-550911681.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-_m2W7cstdTo/UE45gGz1IsI/AAAAAAAAAeI/51ko9p6_kNw/s640/blogger-image-550911681.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">She looks so tiny in her Daddy's arms.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Iy33DuQocOs/UDzEODfj3iI/AAAAAAAAAdU/4_uw54bBOwY/s1600/blogger-image-1631865832.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Iy33DuQocOs/UDzEODfj3iI/AAAAAAAAAdU/4_uw54bBOwY/s1600/blogger-image-1631865832.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Sleeping peacefully with Mommy</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-nUrsZrFP4rQ/UE45fs9MmtI/AAAAAAAAAeA/S0EV1p1tzZg/s640/blogger-image-1843089075.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-nUrsZrFP4rQ/UE45fs9MmtI/AAAAAAAAAeA/S0EV1p1tzZg/s640/blogger-image-1843089075.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Dog brother watching over her.&nbsp; I think he's finally accepted that she's here to stay!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">At one year, Monica is weighing in at 20 pounds, 1.5 ounces, which is in the 50.86th percentile</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">She is 30.43" tall (2'6.43"), which is in the 82.98th percentile&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">So, what has our one year old been up to lately?&nbsp; Well....raising hell, to be honest! &nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">She's in total daredevil mode.&nbsp; Frankly, I don't have a ton of pictures of her doing anything particularly funny or crazy, because JK and I are always too busy swooping in to avoid disaster.&nbsp; There is no time to pause for pictures in these situations!&nbsp; Take today for example.&nbsp; I ran (literally, I was <u>running</u>!) from the living room to the kitchen to trash a dirty diaper and perform the world's quickest wash (translation: cold water rinse, no soap) of my hands.&nbsp; I didn't even dry them, I kid you not, I was wiping them dry on my t-shirt as I jogged back to the living room.&nbsp; There she was, bumping her head on the lamp shade, which was blocking her way to stretching up to fully standing - - -&nbsp; on the end table.&nbsp; And yes, if you will remember, the end tables have glass inserts on the top.&nbsp; Not the safest place for a baby, right?!?!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Sooo....this is just one of many examples of what is going on in our household lately.&nbsp; Between her crazy acrobatics, daily in-house dance parties, and adventures out to explore various parks and playgrounds, we are certainly keeping busy with this little munchkin.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">So I will just wrap up and say, we love you, Monica.&nbsp; Here's to many more wonderful years ahead!</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-jKi_gCgqEio/UFfTDo0u_qI/AAAAAAAAAe0/itCQ6nZOtXY/s640/blogger-image-1123623247.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-jKi_gCgqEio/UFfTDo0u_qI/AAAAAAAAAe0/itCQ6nZOtXY/s640/blogger-image-1123623247.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Pillow Fest!!!&nbsp; Snuggling and giggling with mommy while we get ready for bed :)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-11639709009425978222012-08-20T20:06:00.003-07:002012-08-20T20:06:20.048-07:00The Tasmanian Grubster<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Today was JK's class registration and orientation at Temple, and he had to get up early (it was still dark!) to get ready to leave by 7:00 am. I fully recognize that I am quite possibly the most spoiled Stay at Home Mom on the planet, having a husband who works from home. Even though he is working during the day, we do get to have our morning coffee and lunch breaks together, which goes a long way towards helping me to maintain my sanity.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In anticipation of JK being out of the house more often than we're used to, Monica and I decided we'd try to kick off the semester in our own way, by being super productive around the house.&nbsp; We came downstairs and I put on an episode of Blues Clues so I could quickly run the vacuum in the dining room. As I was finishing up, I peeked around the corner to find that Monica was sitting on the couch watching her show.&nbsp; I did not put her there!&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qeiw1fXfd44/UDJQYcHJDzI/AAAAAAAAAcc/5__ZTP3dLhY/s1600/blogger-image-1943593357.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qeiw1fXfd44/UDJQYcHJDzI/AAAAAAAAAcc/5__ZTP3dLhY/s400/blogger-image-1943593357.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She laughed at me because she knew she wasn't supposed to be up there. I went in and put her down in the middle of the room, and then turned to go put the vacuum away in the hall closet. In two seconds flat, before I could even get out of the room, I watched her run over to the ottoman barricade, climb one of the little ottomans, and get right back into position on the couch - in her daddy's spot, with daddy's computer mouse and the TV remote.&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">This was no fluke, as I got her on video on the third attempt after I removed her the second time:</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/5FPVb_vS8Tk/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5FPVb_vS8Tk?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5FPVb_vS8Tk?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Sooo....I put the vacuum away and proceded to pack up the little ottomans into the big ottoman.&nbsp; She made an attempt to climb back onto the couch without using them for a boost, but was unsuccessful.&nbsp; I breathed a huge sigh of relief, and we headed off to the kitchen for breakfast.&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I brought her back into the living room after breakfast, and then I ran back to the kitchen to put the yogurt into the fridge.&nbsp; When I came back, she was on the couch.&nbsp; Again.&nbsp; Yep.&nbsp; She can climb up onto the couch from the floor. &nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I was stumped.&nbsp; I couldn't leave the room because she wouldn't stay off the couch.&nbsp; Normally JK is <i>on</i> the couch, working, and would be there to deter her, if necessary.&nbsp; But with just her and I, well...I couldn't let her out of my sight.&nbsp; As I slumped on the couch and tried to figure out how to tackle this problem, she was playing with her toys.&nbsp; I was thankful that she was at least staying at floor level while I was right there in the room.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The logistics of her being able to get onto the couch are a nightmare.&nbsp; For one, she has no awareness of the danger of falling off of the couch, and will blissfully run from one end to the other, stumbling on pillows and falling all over the place.&nbsp; There is absolutely no way that she can be left alone on the couch for even the shortest period of time without the chance of her seriously hurting herself.&nbsp; Second, the ends of the couch are part of their own barricade to keep her from the end tables where we keep all manner of dangerous/expensive/breakable items.&nbsp; Even if she <i>could </i>be left on the couch safely, the couch gives her access to things like laptops and lamps and plants.&nbsp; Was I going to have to rearrange the entire living room?</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As I was mulling all of this over, I glanced over and saw this:</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lO3LHC72NM4/UDJQYzZkU6I/AAAAAAAAAck/bFFYx4ZQ560/s1600/blogger-image-668048057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lO3LHC72NM4/UDJQYzZkU6I/AAAAAAAAAck/bFFYx4ZQ560/s400/blogger-image-668048057.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The Grubster was helping herself to some Party Mix.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">When we get done with all the "good" stuff in the Party Mix (i.e. Cheetos), and all that is left is a handful of lame pretzels and BBQ corn chip crumbs, we usually give the container to Monica.&nbsp; The little bit of leftover snacks makes a fun noise when she rolls it around, and the container itself makes a great drum.&nbsp; I have no idea what prompted her to attempt - and succeed - at removing the lid this morning, but she was having herself a fine snack.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Sick of the suddenly-not-baby-proofed-at-all living room, I took her upstairs to give myself a break.&nbsp; We made a pit stop to wash the cheesy crumbs and stains off her face and fingers, and then I let her go about her business.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We were playing in her room and I was sitting in the glider while Monica was "doing laundry," which involves running amok while carrying various items of clothing from room to room.&nbsp; And then this happened:</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vuZOUKb4-o8/UDJQZkL2PmI/AAAAAAAAAcs/pnzIQZXcTxY/s1600/blogger-image--2062775417.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vuZOUKb4-o8/UDJQZkL2PmI/AAAAAAAAAcs/pnzIQZXcTxY/s400/blogger-image--2062775417.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She decided to climb right over the glider ottoman that we keep wedged between the dresser and the rocker to barricade her from the outlet behind it.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Still in disbelief from the morning's downstairs antics, I got to work on moving the dresser.&nbsp; This entailed removing half the drawers so it would be light enough to move, and dragging the dresser in front of the outlet, all while trying to keep an excited frenzied Monica from completely destroying the nicely folded contents of the drawers that were temporarily on the floor.&nbsp; I finished the heavy lifting and shooed her away as I worked on putting the drawers back into the dresser.&nbsp; While I wasn't sold on the new location of the dresser, it would work until JK got home to help with a more permanent relocation.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She had gone running out of the room, so I followed to see what she was up to.&nbsp; I found her in the bathroom, crouched behind the toilet, examining the toilet's plumbing connections.&nbsp; With her mouth.&nbsp; For obvious reasons, there is no picture of this disgusting incident. &nbsp; </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A glance at the clock showed that it was 11am.&nbsp; I have never been so happy to declare nap time, and I have never been so grateful as when she went right to sleep without a fuss.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Surprisingly, the remainder of the day was fairly tame, with only one more unexpected kamikaze move when she tried to throw herself into the bathtub.&nbsp; JK couldn't believe that he missed so much activity in only three short hours of time.&nbsp; I still have no idea what we're going to do about the couch situation, but at least JK will be home tomorrow to help me figure it out!&nbsp; Maybe while she's asleep she'll forget about all the crazy new tricks she learned today?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Qeiw1fXfd44/UDJQYcHJDzI/AAAAAAAAAcc/5__ZTP3dLhY/s640/blogger-image-1943593357.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-90705355253401302292012-08-08T09:09:00.001-07:002012-08-08T09:09:28.933-07:00Mama, mama, mama, mama, mama<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To put it nicely, Monica has been a bit of a challenge lately.&nbsp; It's "Mama, mama, mama, mama, mama" 24/7. I can't leave her sight without an episode of shrieking and screaming.&nbsp; She does not care if JK is right there playing with her, she goes postal when I walk away. When we're playing upstairs and I try to go into the bathroom, she throws herself on the floor outside of the door and screams and rolls around until I let her in.&nbsp; Then, when I open the door, she comes in and hangs on my leg with the "Mama, mama, mama, mama" on repeat, reaching up for me to hold her <u>on my lap</u>.&nbsp; Sorry, kid, but no.&nbsp; </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">JK has taken to referring to himself as "Not the Mama," instead of Dada. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Me, I'm feeling a lot like this:</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/cNkp4QF3we8?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">90% of the time, she doesn't actually need anything.&nbsp; For instance, she hangs on my leg and whines when I'm sitting on the couch.&nbsp; As soon as I relocate to the floor, she is off and playing with her toys.&nbsp; The second I sneak back onto the couch, she is hanging on my leg.&nbsp; It's making me nuts!&nbsp; Not to mention that my back is breaking from constantly sitting on the floor or holding her or carrying her.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Therefore, JK has had to become <u>really</u> creative in his attempts to amuse her when I need to step away for a minute.&nbsp; So, the other, day, I came out of the bathroom and found this going on in her room:</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/gUiT4RiGH6Y?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' />&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Hilarious, right?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;">But here's the thing....she now thinks it is the funniest thing ever to put things on her head and <u>run</u> full speed while she can't see anything.&nbsp; Since we have never-ending piles of laundry on the floor, she has easy access to grab a t-shirt, throw it over her head and face, and go running amok.&nbsp; JK found her crashing into the hallway walls repeatedly, and then collapsing in a fit of giggles on the floor.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Her cast comes off one week from today.&nbsp; Why do I get the sneaking suspicion that this first cast is not going to be the last cast?</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">&nbsp;&nbsp; </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-81156783893519801542012-08-06T12:30:00.005-07:002012-08-06T12:30:52.790-07:00Monica's 11 Month Update<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Happy 11 month birthday, Monica!&nbsp; We can't believe that you turned 11 months old on July 29th, and that in less than a month you will have been in our lives for an entire year!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Summertime with the little Grubster has been great, and July was more of a laid back month, for a few reasons.&nbsp; Let's get down to some details!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bfkv3E7DSNU/T_jp2IwMIJI/AAAAAAAAAZk/HNj935rkJuE/s1600/Shoes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bfkv3E7DSNU/T_jp2IwMIJI/AAAAAAAAAZk/HNj935rkJuE/s320/Shoes.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We kicked off the month by taking Monica to get her very first pair of sneakers!&nbsp; We went to Stride Rite and had her walking abilities assessed and her feet measured in order to get the right type and size of sneakers for her still-developing feet.&nbsp; The sales ladies were in awe that our 10 month old was wandering around the store like a seasoned toddler.&nbsp; She skipped right past the first two stages of "starter" shoes and went right into a pair of real sneakers!&nbsp; We thought she'd take a few days to get used to having them on her feet - nope!&nbsp; She was running up and down the sidewalk that night, showing off her new shoes to the neighbors. &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Now that she has appropriate footwear, Monica has overcome her dislike of the grass, and will happily follow us around the yard to do some light yard work.&nbsp; Her favorite thing is to gather up sticks and twigs so daddy doesn't run them over with the lawn mower.&nbsp; Occasionally, she'll try to jump in and help out with a more difficult task, but that can get a little scary....</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fhtUBo6HtlM/UCAQ4GRYsbI/AAAAAAAAAcA/dS2MzuNbjPo/s1600/blogger-image-1619071001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fhtUBo6HtlM/UCAQ4GRYsbI/AAAAAAAAAcA/dS2MzuNbjPo/s400/blogger-image-1619071001.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yikes, wrong way, Grubster!!! Point it at the plants, not at your face!!!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LI7GD_CvBM0/UB6Fpxw1XVI/AAAAAAAAAbA/VGsO_QaFL1Q/s1600/blogger-image-393298210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LI7GD_CvBM0/UB6Fpxw1XVI/AAAAAAAAAbA/VGsO_QaFL1Q/s400/blogger-image-393298210.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Phew!&nbsp; That was a close one!&nbsp; Much better, point the hose AWAY from your face.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LMgJwBoaBOQ/UB6FqKipOiI/AAAAAAAAAbI/VVz-sykaCaI/s1600/blogger-image-662515735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LMgJwBoaBOQ/UB6FqKipOiI/AAAAAAAAAbI/VVz-sykaCaI/s400/blogger-image-662515735.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Since the doctor cleared her at the 9 month checkup to try all foods (with the exception of honey), Monica has been trying all sorts of new foods this month.&nbsp; She's pretty keen on seafood - she's had crab legs and salmon - and corn on the cob is definitely topping the list as a new favorite.&nbsp; </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wAAY-Xl_2K0/UB6FpO4R99I/AAAAAAAAAaw/xInThGLaW3s/s1600/blogger-image--897780496.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wAAY-Xl_2K0/UB6FpO4R99I/AAAAAAAAAaw/xInThGLaW3s/s400/blogger-image--897780496.jpg" width="400" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She actually wanted to catch a turtle for some turtle soup up at the cabin - but it looks like daddy caught her first!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Unfortunately, not all "firsts" in this little one's life are going to be fun and smiles.&nbsp; Monica was running along the deck and tripped and broke her arm on the 14th.&nbsp; We were not even sure it was broken as her stumble itself was like any other.&nbsp; The difference was that she was avoiding putting any weight on the arm and would throw it out of the way when she would fall, instead of catching herself.&nbsp; We waited a full day to see if she would get back to normal, and then made an appointment with the pediatrician for the following morning.&nbsp; The doctor sent us for x-rays and confirmed it was broken, and then sent us for our first - and, dear God, hopefully last! - trip to CHOP to see an arm specialist and get her a cast.&nbsp; Poor baby!&nbsp; It was quite a trying experience for all of us, especially her.&nbsp; Luckily, the cast only has to stay on for a total of four weeks.&nbsp; We can't wait for it to be gone, everything from eating to sleeping to bathing is a big ordeal.&nbsp; But, at least it is pink, and as fashionable as a cast can be.&nbsp; </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E9OrtF0PK5o/UCAN5HzBpYI/AAAAAAAAAbg/Mhhx0VufmVI/s1600/blogger-image-1536091627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E9OrtF0PK5o/UCAN5HzBpYI/AAAAAAAAAbg/Mhhx0VufmVI/s400/blogger-image-1536091627.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Luckily, Monica is a real trooper, and she's not letting the cast slow her down.&nbsp; She was right back to running and playing within a day.&nbsp; It was a few days for her to get used to the extra weight on the one side and to regain her balance, but she has been handling it better than we expected.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So, for the most part, we've been keeping things pretty low key for the second half of the month.&nbsp; Since she can't talk and tell us if the cast is getting itchy, or damp, or uncomfortable, we have to be really careful about not getting it wet or too dirty.&nbsp; And the weather has been a little crazy with storms threatening every few days, which has kept us from some of our regular walks.&nbsp; We can't risk getting stuck out in the rain with this thing. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But, not to waste the whole summer, we ordered Monica a special fully&nbsp; submersible cast cover.&nbsp; While it is primarily for bathing - she was getting stinky that first week while it was on order! - it has also enabled Monica to go swimming.&nbsp; Here she is in the pool for the first time:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PIb5_bn7HDI/UCAN5aHGRiI/AAAAAAAAAbo/2DTrTRiiipk/s1600/blogger-image--1530865998.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PIb5_bn7HDI/UCAN5aHGRiI/AAAAAAAAAbo/2DTrTRiiipk/s1600/blogger-image--1530865998.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Look at that happy smile!&nbsp; We definitely have a water baby on our hands, this kid cannot get enough of the pool.&nbsp; We were very cautious about introducing her to the water to make sure that she had a positive experience.&nbsp; She has surprised all of us by willing - and repeatedly - putting her own face directly into the water and then coming up giggling.&nbsp; Even with the cast cover, we are hesitant to fully submerge her upper shoulder for fear of water leakage, but I can tell we'll be starting swimming lessons sooner than later.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;">So, that's been our month of July.&nbsp; We wrapped up the month by celebrating my birthday.&nbsp; JK and Monica giving me this great new hammock.&nbsp; Monica loves snuggling and swinging with mommy :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QxAgCsypXYs/UB6FpcJjFuI/AAAAAAAAAa4/SLgSopUGaPk/s640/blogger-image--1882451386.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QxAgCsypXYs/UB6FpcJjFuI/AAAAAAAAAa4/SLgSopUGaPk/s640/blogger-image--1882451386.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-E9OrtF0PK5o/UCAN5HzBpYI/AAAAAAAAAbg/Mhhx0VufmVI/s640/blogger-image-1536091627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-fhtUBo6HtlM/UCAQ4GRYsbI/AAAAAAAAAcA/dS2MzuNbjPo/s640/blogger-image-1619071001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-47933848665858146162012-07-13T14:45:00.000-07:002012-07-13T14:45:01.849-07:00Puff Fest 2012<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I've heard it a million times, a million ways, from dozens of people.&nbsp; It's when there is silence in the house that you should worry about what your kid is doing.&nbsp; Be afraid when you don't hear playing, crashing, and shrieking from the next room.&nbsp; Because that means that something scary is going on.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Like this:</span>&nbsp; <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-6HROnCx-uWU/UAAjMKoH0lI/AAAAAAAAAag/FcC5obn2DLQ/s640/blogger-image-1816902234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-6HROnCx-uWU/UAAjMKoH0lI/AAAAAAAAAag/FcC5obn2DLQ/s640/blogger-image-1816902234.jpg" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yep, that's a silently snacking little Grubster with a whole tube of puffs spread around her on the floor.&nbsp; Well done, Monica, one more mommy milestone for me.&nbsp; Gotta love her!</span></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-17039382830837493232012-07-08T20:18:00.001-07:002012-08-06T12:29:30.856-07:00Monica's 10 Month Update<br />Summer continues in full swing, and we have had a TON of firsts this past month:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Monica's now has her own chair - a little person's adirondack chair to match mommy's and daddy's chairs. Perfect for lounging in the backyard, watching dog brother chase balls and frisbees, and supervising while mommy tends to the garden.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Uk6zWb_N9YI/T-0Fmz50FOI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/ccoiI_NTRl0/s640/blogger-image--1569648077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Uk6zWb_N9YI/T-0Fmz50FOI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/ccoiI_NTRl0/s640/blogger-image--1569648077.jpg" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Monica found her professional calling this month: dog grooming. Dog brother very patiently allowed her to brush him, and she thought it was the most hilarious thing EVER.&nbsp; It was slightly less hilarious for me since she was using my brush, instead of a dog brush.&nbsp; </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ZVtmFRwNFMk/T-0FneSSmWI/AAAAAAAAAZY/2OiM1UDOxQA/s640/blogger-image-2125587706.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ZVtmFRwNFMk/T-0FneSSmWI/AAAAAAAAAZY/2OiM1UDOxQA/s640/blogger-image-2125587706.jpg" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Monica's also had her first trip to the beach! This kid loves, I mean LOVES the beach. The sand, the ocean, she loved everything about it!&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Checking out the ocean for the first time with Daddy.&nbsp; She loved splashing in the surf, it was so cute! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QtsB4sUnAgE/T_nPqqk_LjI/AAAAAAAAAZw/fHEcVgrT8Ic/s640/blogger-image-1236417378.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QtsB4sUnAgE/T_nPqqk_LjI/AAAAAAAAAZw/fHEcVgrT8Ic/s640/blogger-image-1236417378.jpg" />&nbsp;</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Playing in the sand with Mommy.&nbsp; She was having fun, I swear, she really just wanted to get away from me so she could look for seashells. &nbsp; </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-XVO_jueCAlg/T_nPvYFxIWI/AAAAAAAAAaA/e_VbWI6Fmq8/s640/blogger-image--1700600745.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-XVO_jueCAlg/T_nPvYFxIWI/AAAAAAAAAaA/e_VbWI6Fmq8/s640/blogger-image--1700600745.jpg" />&nbsp;</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lounging around, catching some rays. </div><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-gvjmso7Ugbo/T_nPv0un0CI/AAAAAAAAAaI/VcUZv5RtJms/s640/blogger-image-15040834.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-gvjmso7Ugbo/T_nPv0un0CI/AAAAAAAAAaI/VcUZv5RtJms/s640/blogger-image-15040834.jpg" /> </a><br />First Restaurant Experience:&nbsp; Grotto's Pizza on the Rehoboth Boardwalk.&nbsp; Great choice, Monica!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SVWXAB9QxCY/T-0FllCC5yI/AAAAAAAAAZA/kZrCKQl2wbM/s1600/blogger-image-27549068.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SVWXAB9QxCY/T-0FllCC5yI/AAAAAAAAAZA/kZrCKQl2wbM/s400/blogger-image-27549068.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">First carousel ride at Funland, Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk. Monica jumped right on a starting shaking the pole, encouraging her trusty steed, saying, "Mush, mush!" No, Monica, we gently corrected her, we don't say "mush" to a horse, we say, "Giddyup!"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pd7Eob-H8UE/T-0FmeMYNAI/AAAAAAAAAZI/Dvrdk9K3DAc/s1600/blogger-image--498105989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pd7Eob-H8UE/T-0FmeMYNAI/AAAAAAAAAZI/Dvrdk9K3DAc/s640/blogger-image--498105989.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">&nbsp;Our family on the beach.&nbsp; What a great time we had!!! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yU20wB2nOcM/T_pKF92N7VI/AAAAAAAAAaU/uht1xlKV83w/s640/blogger-image--656061981.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yU20wB2nOcM/T_pKF92N7VI/AAAAAAAAAaU/uht1xlKV83w/s640/blogger-image--656061981.jpg" /></a></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-59418621036396762652012-06-29T10:35:00.000-07:002012-06-29T10:35:12.595-07:00Monica's Nine Month Update<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Attention All Grub Files Followers! The author of the Grub Files, yours truly, would like to plead guilty to a missed publishing of Miss Monica's 9 Month Update. Allow me to explain: At any given point in time, I generally have anywhere from 2 to 10 blog topics or entries that I'm working on writing. And as Monica gets older, and the list of total blog entries gets longer, it gets a teensy bit tougher to manage the blog in the background. Sooo....it was not until this very moment when I hopped on here to work on Monica's 10 month update that I realized that the 9 month update was still marked as <i>draft</i> and therefore not published. Oh, the horror! And to think that there was a chance that I might have accidentally published the 10 month update <i>before</i> the 9 month update! I'm having an anxiety attack just thinking about it. We would have had to throw away the whole blog and start over. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little. But that would have really bugged me!</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Anyway, I will cut myself a little slack as the end of the month approaches, as there is also the fact that Monica's 9 month checkup with her pediatrician was not until the middle the month of June, just two weeks ago. So, kinda sorta technically - yes I'm stretching here! - it's not <i>that</i> late. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Let's get to the good stuff, shall we? </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Height: 2' 5.25" 91.5%i based on length-for-age data</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Weight: 17lbs 15ozs 27.7% based on weight-for-age data</span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">While Monica is still very tall for her age, her weight gain is tapering off. But the doctor and JK and I are not at all concerned, because the kid eats like a horse! There are many factors that come into play here such as breastfeeding (as opposed to formula feeding), increased mobility at a very early age, and having two parents with high metabolisms. So, again, no worries.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">While we are on the topic of food, the pediatrician has cleared us to give Monica any and all foods, with the exception of honey.&nbsp; She will pretty much eat anything we put in front of her, as long as she gets to feed herself.&nbsp; The Grubster's independence is getting in the way of spoon feeding these days, but we still manage to sneak in a couple bites of yogurt with fruit here and there.&nbsp; </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The biggest news this month is that, by definition, we no longer have an infant; we have a toddler. At just 9 months old, you may ask with raised eyebrows? Why, yes. Our child has fully adopted walking as her primary means of getting around.&nbsp; </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So, what else has this little Grubster been up to in the past month? </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Swinging:</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AdZbWnlhZcg/T-zuUsKk1dI/AAAAAAAAAYs/2xJIR2whZDM/s1600/blogger-image--147124846.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AdZbWnlhZcg/T-zuUsKk1dI/AAAAAAAAAYs/2xJIR2whZDM/s1600/blogger-image--147124846.jpg" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Exploring: </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2k2r2o1_t_c/T9_rghfbA9I/AAAAAAAAAYI/WEESE_U4eB4/s1600/outside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2k2r2o1_t_c/T9_rghfbA9I/AAAAAAAAAYI/WEESE_U4eB4/s400/outside.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Clapping:</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wv-4FvVUPQM/T9_rXXsEOjI/AAAAAAAAAYA/sLbbz8shD5s/s1600/Clapping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wv-4FvVUPQM/T9_rXXsEOjI/AAAAAAAAAYA/sLbbz8shD5s/s320/Clapping.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">and Motorcycle Riding:</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6Su3csnRJ-w/T-zuVN8xphI/AAAAAAAAAY0/JS0dmlNdOEo/s1600/blogger-image--1066412174.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6Su3csnRJ-w/T-zuVN8xphI/AAAAAAAAAY0/JS0dmlNdOEo/s1600/blogger-image--1066412174.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We're having a wildly fun summer so far!&nbsp; For now, we're packing it up to go on Grub's first spelunking adventure. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">More Grub-related news to come next week in the 10 Month Update post.&nbsp; Stay tuned!</span>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-48192373833463479852012-06-28T16:45:00.000-07:002012-06-28T16:45:05.073-07:00Dirty Grub Business<div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I just went upstairs to get Monica from her second nap. JK is out at his mixed martial arts class, and I was trying to decide if Monica and I were going to take a walk to the playground, or if we would go out to Trader Joe's for some food supplies. I took her out of the crib and was snuggling her for a second in the rocker, and I said, "Some little stink really needs a bath after dinner. Let's check your diaper." </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">When we got to the changing table, I found that not only was there poop inside of her diaper, but it was outside of her diaper as well. Shocking, truly, because it's been months since this has happened. Early on, JK and I were completely desensitized to poop explosions. Alas, after many months free from scrubbing Dreft into her poop-stained clothing, this situation was not met with any nostalgia on my part. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I made an executive decision to wipe her down the best I could with some baby wipes, and then escort her straight into the bathtub for a real cleaning, even though we had not had dinner yet. She just smelled too bad, and it was really unappetizing. So, I whisked her into the bathroom and started running the tub. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">This is the part when she decided to pee all over the floor. So, not only did she need a scrubbing, but I also got to scrub the floor and clean up her laundry that she peed all over. At least the clothes were already dirty. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Now we're in the kitchen and she is having some string cheese and meatballs and applesauce with yogurt for dinner. Obviously, her appetite was not affected whatsoever by the situation upstairs. Business as usual for this Grub!</div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-5_5pYgZ588Y/T-zr16-Om1I/AAAAAAAAAYg/Rd_EszX37AI/s640/blogger-image--827621346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-5_5pYgZ588Y/T-zr16-Om1I/AAAAAAAAAYg/Rd_EszX37AI/s640/blogger-image--827621346.jpg" /></a></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-14772146063961588642012-06-23T21:25:00.000-07:002012-06-23T21:31:05.879-07:00Grub Pen, we bid you farewell...<div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">It is with heavy hearts that we announce that the infamous <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6084033210927782770#editor/target=post;postID=445119626969053702" target="_blank">Grub Pen</a> has been dismantled. Our little girl needs more room to explore, so we have have spent the last week troubleshooting, brainstorming, and gate installing all over this house so that she can have access to roam more freely. I won't try to pretend that I didn't shed a few tears as JK was breaking down the Grub Pen to utilize the pieces to cordon off his computer equipment. But, they were short lived, as I had to suck it up and move on to get the Grubster into the bath. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Wait, you might ask, didn't she just have a bath yesterday? Why, yes, yes she did. However, tonight, she decided it was hilarious to gag herself with her toys and hands, laughing hysterically, until she projectile vomited bile all over both of us in the car. Disgusting. But that's totally off topic.</div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">Anyway, back to the household babyproofing situation. We still have some clean-up work to do and things to install, but we're getting there. I joke about being sad that she is growing up, but in fact, it is truly the most convoluted and confusing feeling that I have ever felt. One one hand, it is exciting and liberating that she can walk around like a little person now. Her focus is shifting upward, and she's not spending every single second trying to pick every single particle off of the floor and put it in her mouth, the way she was when she was crawling. She's not wearing out the knees of her pajamas after a couple of wears, and that is great, too! But, on the other hand, it is challenging and scary that she can get around the house and she is <i>fast</i>! Literally, I blink, and she is gone from my immediate line of sight. Frightening! </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">I talk to a lot of moms online whose babies were born in Monica's birth month, and it's about 50/50 as to whether or not their 9-10 month olds are mobile yet. The ones whose babies are not are hearing horror stories - people say, "oh, wait till your little one is walking, <i>then</i> you're <i>really </i>in trouble!" In my opinion, I'm liking this stage more than crawling. Is it easier for her to get away from me now? Absolutely. Is it difficult to deal with things like changing diapers and clothing? Hell yeah! But it's also a <i>lot</i> of fun. I'm finding that all ages and stages have their pros and cons....and as a parent, it's my job to get through the tough stuff and focus on having fun and enjoying the great parts. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">For example, it's been ungodly hot the past week, so we've been a little cooped up in the house. So today, I dressed Monica, threw her in the car, and went to Kohl's to get us out of the house. My objective was to return and exchange an outfit for her. But, when we got into store, I realized that the shopping carts were gross, I didn't have our stroller, and I had left the return item in the car. I had this heavy, sweaty kid stuck to me, and she was wiggling like crazy to get down. So, what did we do? We walked to the back of the store to housewares and Monica spent a half an hour running around the empty department and "playing drums" by beating on the bed-in-a-bags that were within her reach. She had fun and burned off some energy, and I had fun watching her. It was a win-win. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;">So, I guess that's my lesson to myself right now. Try to enjoy each stage as she's growing up. People aren't kidding when they tell you that <i>it goes by so fast</i>. It really does. </div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: &quot;Trebuchet MS&quot;,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-whYh9Gq9sxk/T-aWnybKuTI/AAAAAAAAAYU/GUeR-44admw/s640/blogger-image--1096922265.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-whYh9Gq9sxk/T-aWnybKuTI/AAAAAAAAAYU/GUeR-44admw/s400/blogger-image--1096922265.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-53438895293095561412012-05-23T09:14:00.002-07:002012-05-23T09:14:54.525-07:00Who Walks at Eight Months? This Kid!<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As promised, we have worked to capture Monica's amazing feat of walking at only eight months old.&nbsp; Here are a couple clips so you can see her in action!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/HwTCd9GzKuo?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/j8Kzjmu6BdY?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/1vX6K54OlfE?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As you can tell in the last video, she was starting to get sleepy, haha!&nbsp; But don't worry, she got her second wind when we went downstairs and she was jumping all over the couch to try to get to the cat.&nbsp; </div>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6084033210927782770.post-51731162044442104012012-05-22T11:51:00.001-07:002012-05-22T11:51:10.119-07:00You mean you have to use your hands? That's like a baby's toy!Do you know what movie that is from? If not, click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMy1zO8m8sM" target="_blank">here</a> for the answer.<br /><br />Monica has started to regularly quote this scene while hanging out in her pen.&nbsp; Her sweet little baby toys that once captivated her attention - her bees, her monkey, her lion - barely hold her interest anymore. She wants her flashy light-up singing talking remote control and her fancy music table. It's either that or the real TV - ugh!<br /><br />While letting her rot her brain watching TV is the easiest way to amuse her, JK and I do make a real effort to engage her with her toys and books We resort to the TV as a crutch when we want to have a meal without the Grub Dog begging for us to throw scraps to her in her pen.<br /><br />So, to shake things up in the toy department, we splurged and bought Monica a few new toys this month. <br /><br /><br />First lego set!<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2j7xgWojfYw/T6yNbmbYTxI/AAAAAAAAAVk/OYmEOj8ypYk/s640/blogger-image--69672333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2j7xgWojfYw/T6yNbmbYTxI/AAAAAAAAAVk/OYmEOj8ypYk/s640/blogger-image--69672333.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">JK giving building instructions</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-oem_IE1hoNs/T6yNbOt9U7I/AAAAAAAAAVc/c8TyI5dQhfI/s640/blogger-image--489760502.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-M6SA1WEadMw/T6yNb6cFq1I/AAAAAAAAAVs/Wdwz_0Wxqt8/s640/blogger-image--398522973.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-M6SA1WEadMw/T6yNb6cFq1I/AAAAAAAAAVs/Wdwz_0Wxqt8/s640/blogger-image--398522973.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monica listening intently</td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ODB6OQTioS4/T6yNeQsOUrI/AAAAAAAAAWc/sO_60X0FlJc/s640/blogger-image-1684461418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ODB6OQTioS4/T6yNeQsOUrI/AAAAAAAAAWc/sO_60X0FlJc/s640/blogger-image-1684461418.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All parts of this toy are great!</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Ky1dZGkoZp8/T6yNcsaFdRI/AAAAAAAAAV0/kdQngdo53g0/s640/blogger-image-734593594.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Ky1dZGkoZp8/T6yNcsaFdRI/AAAAAAAAAV0/kdQngdo53g0/s640/blogger-image-734593594.jpg" />&nbsp;&nbsp;</a><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yay, a huge tower to knock down!&nbsp; </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KMI5VJ6TrVM/T6yNc9fFWXI/AAAAAAAAAV8/s3OoAPuYW5w/s640/blogger-image--277899030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KMI5VJ6TrVM/T6yNc9fFWXI/AAAAAAAAAV8/s3OoAPuYW5w/s640/blogger-image--277899030.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What's this??&nbsp; A caterpillar tunnel?&nbsp; Awesome!</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-oem_IE1hoNs/T6yNbOt9U7I/AAAAAAAAAVc/c8TyI5dQhfI/s1600/blogger-image--489760502.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><img border="0" height="298" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-oem_IE1hoNs/T6yNbOt9U7I/AAAAAAAAAVc/c8TyI5dQhfI/s400/blogger-image--489760502.jpg" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at meee!!!</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-rf_2ZcmesmA/T6yNdIZ9P9I/AAAAAAAAAWE/Z7GDvZJxH9I/s640/blogger-image--824772661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-rf_2ZcmesmA/T6yNdIZ9P9I/AAAAAAAAAWE/Z7GDvZJxH9I/s1600/blogger-image--824772661.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Umm, Daddy, you're too big for this toy!</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OPqQ8sb-Rkw/T6yNdgg_yqI/AAAAAAAAAWM/JNCZieY0sAg/s640/blogger-image--1506217341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OPqQ8sb-Rkw/T6yNdgg_yqI/AAAAAAAAAWM/JNCZieY0sAg/s640/blogger-image--1506217341.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing through the door</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UBd4T5Jq7LQ/T6yNd9DvxII/AAAAAAAAAWU/qX0HIQff6Wo/s640/blogger-image--1172489203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UBd4T5Jq7LQ/T6yNd9DvxII/AAAAAAAAAWU/qX0HIQff6Wo/s640/blogger-image--1172489203.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm gonna get you, mama!</td></tr></tbody></table>Melissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02688977971101411458noreply@blogger.com0